The Four Hundred and Fifty: Utilization
“It seems that within the Church, there’s also a struggle among dissenters,” Doro thought. After all, it’s impossible for a sufficiently large organization not to have some factional disputes. Summer Tree’s current situation is very likely being manipulated by certain factions within the Church.
“However, it’s just right; the more Vania is ‘utilized’ by others, the more ‘harmless’ she appears in the eyes of those in power. The likelihood of her being suspected decreases, making her situation much safer.”
By this thought, Doro felt pleased rather than worried about Vania being exploited by a certain force within the Church. After all, someone who can be easily utilized won’t be closely guarded by others.
Under Doro’s prior arrangements, the Church became aware that the reason Summer Tree really converted was due to the discovery of Abyss Cult spies. The fact that they were being used by the Abyss Cult was exposed, and Vania was merely a pretext for Summer Tree’s apparent conversion. In this light, Vania appeared to be used by Summer Tree in the eyes of the Church. Now, one of the factions within the Church was utilizing Vania for propaganda, suppressing other rival factions, and to those rival factions, Vania appeared to be exploited.
What is there to guard against for a little nun being repeatedly used this way?
Therefore, from the very beginning, Doro advised Vania to always act like a truly simple-minded little nun, the more nervous the better, the more innocent the better, and the more devout on the surface the better. In short, she should try to craft a “sweet simpleton” persona, making herself a decorative character; the deeper this persona takes root in people’s hearts, the more safely she could navigate the Church and gain profits from her merits and fame.
Fortunately, Vania’s nature isn’t too far from this sweet simpleton persona.
“While this persona is easy for Vania to perform, she still harbors too many secrets that the Church cannot tolerate. Under the increasingly intense scrutiny, her long-standing psychological pressure is bound to grow. Recently, her prayers to Akka have become more frequent, and her contact with me has also been increasing…”
Doro continued to think. In recent times, Vania had initiated conversations with her more often due to the increasing mental pressure. Previously, she would only approach Doro when necessary, not wanting to disturb the important work of this Rosy Cross member, so their interaction frequency was not too high. However, that frequency was now rising rapidly.
Initially, Vania would report on some not-so-important matters just to chat. Gradually, she started reaching out to Doro for trivial issues, and now it seemed that she was even reaching out just for the sake of talking to Doro.
After all, in Vania’s eyes, aside from the mysterious and great Akka, Doro was the only person who completely understood her. In the dangerous environment of the Church, Vania could only open her heart when communicating with Doro. Doro was naturally pleased to alleviate her pressure, so whenever Vania contacted her under the pretense of “reporting information,” Doro patiently communicated with her. Doro understood that only if Vania’s mentality stabilized could she securely stand within the Church.
For instance, this current contact exemplifies her thoughts. Looking at the familiar handwriting on the “Navigation of the Literary Sea,” Doro pondered for a moment and wrote:
“A welcome banquet arranged by the Archbishop? I understand, that’s okay. The Archbishop might not even attend himself, it’s possible he will just send a representative to convey his regards. You don’t need to worry too much…”
Doro wrote many words of comfort on the page, and after finishing, she turned to gaze out at the rolling sea, contemplating the journey ahead.
“At this rate, we should be able to reach the port by noon. Vania has taken quite a bit of time due to cooperating with Summer Tree for the Church’s follow-up work. It seems I can arrive in Adria ahead of schedule… Perhaps I should meet her if the opportunity arises, to ease her mind a bit…”
…
Time flew by quickly, and before long, the morning passed. After nearly two days of sailing, the passenger ship Doro was on finally arrived at its destination, the large seaside city of Iwig, Adria.
As Doro, dressed in a white sailor-style outfit, controlled the Parent Zombie Puppet carrying her luggage down the ship, she couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief after glancing at the bustling dock in front of her.
Next, Doro and the Parent Zombie Puppet exited the dock and arrived at a lively traffic intersection, where many taxis were waiting for passengers disembarking from the ship. To Doro’s surprise, not far from the intersection on the coast, numerous small boats were anchored, each manned by a coachman in a similar uniform. Many travelers chose to board the small boats instead of taking the taxis, and it seemed that more were opting for the boats.
Seeing the numerous boatmen, Doro suddenly recalled that Adria is a city comprising hundreds of natural and man-made islands, with a network of waterways crisscrossing, making travel by boat more convenient. This is also one of the characteristics of this city.
Arriving in a new city, Doro, who had a hint of a tourist mindset, naturally chose a more distinctive way to explore. Before long, she had boarded a small boat controlled by a coachman, who after warmly placing her luggage, spoke to the Parent Zombie Puppet.
“Sir, where would you like to go? Would you like me to guide you along the most scenic route?”
“Well… my daughter and I have just arrived here, and we’d like to find a place to store our luggage first,” the somewhat plump and amicable Parent Zombie Puppet replied with a smile. The coachman nodded and continued enthusiastically.
“I see! Let me recommend a few hotels; I assure you they are comfortable and affordable, ensuring that both you and your lovely daughter will be satisfied.”
“Haha… you don’t need to trouble yourself with recommendations, we’d like to find one ourselves. By the way, do you know about the Pure Flow Church? I’d like to check it out…”
The Parent Zombie Puppet said with an endearing smile. Upon hearing the Parent Zombie Puppet’s fluent Iwig language, the coachman recognized that they were not the kind of foreign tourists easy to swindle, and he replied.
“Alright, then we shall head to the Pure Flow Church. Please hold on!”
With that, the coachman grasped the oars and began rowing the boat. Under his skilled guidance, the small boat gradually left the shore, and after sailing a short distance, it entered a waterway leading into the city. Buildings began to swiftly move past them on either side, as their small boat glided smoothly between rows of structures.
Sitting in the small boat, Doro widened her crimson eyes, curiously taking in the colorful buildings rushing past while listening to the gentle sounds of water and admiring the various stone sculptures along the banks. The boat often passed under bridges, and Doro could occasionally hear carriages overhead. Looking out across the waterway’s surface, several similar small passenger boats glided by, and in some places, lines of ducks paddled along.
Thus, Doro’s small boat sailed along the winding waterways. Before long, as they rounded a bend, the buildings along one side of the water vanished, replaced by a spacious square. Doro looked toward the end of the square and saw a magnificent cathedral standing in the distance.
On the spire of that cathedral, which seemed even larger than St. Hymn Cathedral, a dazzling light appeared, seemingly created by refracted sunlight, causing Doro to squint her eyes slightly.
“Look, passenger! Over there is the Pure Flow Cathedral! Do you see the light atop the cathedral? That’s the most precious treasure of the Pure Flow Church, the pride of Adria, the Emmanuel Crown, shining with the brilliance of jewels!”
“Jewels…?”
Listening to the coachman’s words, gazing at the radiant glow in the distance, Doro felt a peculiar sensation and silently activated her spiritual sight. In her vision, amidst the white light that seemed to reflect the sun, strands of orange and yellow began to reveal themselves—this was the spiritual color of “Lamp.”
The crown jewel placed atop the Pure Flow Church seemed to be an extraordinary “Lamp” with the nature of a Radiance Lamp.
